A web of fake online subscriptions, ranging from dating to streaming services, has been exposed as the front for one of the largest credit card fraud operations in recent years.

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Coordinated by Eurojust, the investigation culminated this week with 18 arrests across Europe and North America, highlighting fake websites, shell companies, and compromised payment platforms siphoned hundreds of millions of euros from unsuspecting cardholders.

Targeting Digital Payments Systems

According to philenews, between 2016 and 2021, the criminal network ran a sophisticated scheme that preyed on digital payment systems. Fraudsters stole credit card data and created nearly 19 million fake user accounts across 193 countries.

They reportedly charged small, recurring payments—usually below €50—to avoid detection. Each charge appeared legitimate, labeled vaguely to discourage scrutiny.

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“As traditional and decentralized finance merge, clearer channels for information-sharing between banks and virtual asset service providers will greatly strengthen efforts to detect and disrupt illicit finance,” Ned Conway, the Executive Secretary of the Wolfsberg Group during a Global Conference on Criminal Finances and Crypto assets, as reported by Europol.

Investigators estimate that the fraud generated at least €300 million in confirmed losses, with attempted fraud totaling more than €750 million.

The scale of the deception was amplified by insider collusion. Five senior employees at four German payment service providers, including compliance officers, allegedly worked with the fraud networks.

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Authorities say the perpetrators relied heavily on corporate structures registered in Cyprus and the United Kingdom, designed to obscure ownership and frustrate refund efforts. These shell companies were often acquired through so-called “Crime-as-a-Service” providers, specialized outfits that sell operational tools for criminal schemes.

A Coordinated Global Effort

The breakthrough came from Luxembourg, where the Financial Intelligence Unit traced suspicious transfers linked to money laundering and misuse of company funds. Investigators searched several corporate offices and seized assets worth millions.

Luxembourg’s findings were later shared with Germany’s Koblenz Public Prosecutor’s Office, where the two cases merged into a broader European probe.

Crucially, information from a parallel investigation in the United States, led by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, helped uncover the full scale of the fraud.

Authorities from more than ten countries—including Germany, Cyprus, Luxembourg, Spain, the Netherlands, Canada, the UK, and the United States—contributed to what officials describe as one of the most complex cybercrime investigations ever executed in Europe.

“The misuse of crypto and blockchain technology for criminal purposes is becoming increasingly sophisticated, complex and organised. Investigating these crimes places a significant burden on the law enforcement agencies of EU Member States,” added Head of Europol's European Financial and Economic Crime Centre.

Source: Finance Magnates